The City of Hilliard has partnered with the Central Ohio Community Land Trust (COCLT) for the first time to create a new affordable housing opportunity.
The Land Trust will construct a new 1,400-square-foot, ranch-style home on Bryant Street in Hilliard. The project signifies the commitment between the COCLT and Hilliard to invest in making homeownership affordable to more working individuals and families.
The home, which will be listed at $199,000, includes a fenced-in backyard and a two-car garage. The COCLT will be the developer and hire the Simmons Corporation to build the home, which is expected to cost $350,000.
“We’re excited that an underused lot in Hilliard will become home to a family, thanks to this collaboration with the Land Trust,” said Dan Ralley, Hilliard Assistant City Manager and Director of Community Development.
“This partnership will give access to the wealth-building opportunity of homeownership in our growing and diverse community – a wonderful place to live, work, and play,” Ralley said. “This is one step among many toward ensuring Hilliard has diversity in housing as part of our commitment to fulfilling Central Ohio’s needs for affordable places for people to live.”
The Land Trust is a subsidiary of the Central Ohio Community Improvement Corporation (COCIC), an organization formed by the county commissioners in 2012 to improve the quality of neighborhoods. COCIC is committed to creating more affordable housing options for individuals in underserved and transitioning neighborhoods, bridging the affordability gaps that exist today in Franklin County.
“Mixed-income neighborhoods are critically important,” said Curtiss L. Williams, Sr., President/CEO of COCIC. “It ensures we’re building neighborhoods that reflect the full spectrum of our community and ensures our teachers, healthcare workers, first-responders and service professionals can afford to live in the communities they serve.”
Since its formation, the COCLT has built 138 affordable homes throughout Franklin County for individuals and families with an average annual income of $50,000. Currently, 85% of COCLT homeowners are first-time homebuyers and 59% of homeowners are at 80% or below the area median income (AMI).
